The wines of Luis Pato, Bairrada, Portugal
Website: http://www.luispato.com/
Luis Pato (which is Portuguese for ‘duck’) is probably the best-known producer in the Bairrada region. For a long time he was seen as a modernizer who helped bring a struggling region back to life, but I think it’s unfair to see him just in this light, because his wines have a traditional side to them, and he’s also a champion of the local red grape, Baga. When the regulations in Bairrada changed, allowing growers in the region to use other varieties, you could say that Pato then became a neo-traditionalist. While his winemaking style was modern by the standards of the region, and quite technical, he never went down the alternative varieties path thet others adopted.
Baga has always had a reputation for making rather stern red wines, that are unapproachable in their youth. It also makes sparkling white wines which match perfectly with the gastronomic specialty of this region – the famous suckling pig, leitão. While it’s true that Baga can produce rather tannic, fruitless wines that are tough and somewhat joyless, Pato has shown that Baga deserves a bit more respect than it’s often given. I find that it makes wines that share some characteristics with Italian grapes Nebbiolo or Aglianico, and it can even approach the elegance of Pinot Noir in riper vintages. One of the keys here is the high limestone content in the soils, and another is good viticulture that gets the grapes ripe at sensible alcohol levels.
Pato’s background is that he trained as a chemical engineer before taking over his parent’s winery in the early 1980s. As soon as he was up and running, he began to experiment. He started destemming his wines, which was unusual at the time, and he began to use small oak barrels, some of them new. He also blended in some Touriga Nacional. Quickly his wines caught the attention of the critics. There was a modernizing tendency here that at the time was welcomed by some and distrusted by others.
For a period, though, from 1999 until 2008 his wines were not been labelled ‘Bairrada’, but rather by the broader designation of ‘Beiras’. Why? ‘The Portuguese government nominated a guy for the Bairrada head office who was not the right man’, explained Pato in an interview with me in 2007. ‘So to show a yellow card I moved from Bairrada to Beiras.’ In 2008 vintage, Pato began using the Bairrada appellation again.
Pato showed his open-mindedness in that he was the first overseas judge to participate in the International Wine Challenge, one the world’s largest blind tasting competitions held in London each year. He describes this experience as ‘my tasting university’. Altogether he has assembled 60 hectares of vineyards, and makes a range of reds, whites and sparkling wines from 20 separate blocks in various terroirs within Bairrada.
The range is quite complicated, but at its core are four top reds: the Vinhas Velhas, Vinha Pan and Vinha Barrosa, and the remarkable Pé Franco, made from ungrafted vines which Pato planted in his Riberinho vineyard. There is also a serious white wine, Vinho Formal, which has an interesting story behind it. In 1867, António Augusto de Aguiar produced a map showing his Bairrada demarcation, with a yellow line around the bit he thought was best for white wines (this is shown: the map is in the Bairrada museum). Brazil was the important market for Portuguese wines, and for whites to survive the journey, they had to have the structure of reds. Pato decided to trust Aguiar’s map and bought the Formal vineyard, which has chalky clay soils, and the result is this complex, intense, ageworthy white.
A film on Baga and Bairrada – Luis appears at 03:40
One of Pato’s themes is his take on a traditional approach in the vineyard that he calls ‘precision harvest’. Initially he started doing a green harvest in 1995, in which he removed a third of the grapes at veraison. These days he removes half the grapes: one third at veraison (the usual green harvest), and then later on the balance between a third and a half. This second harvest, of coloured but not mature grapes, is used for the sparkling Baga. He’ll pick the second bunch per stem (the first is the first to grow and is thus more mature). Luis says that his philosophy is ’old world tradition blended with new world precision vinification’.
THE WINES
These were tasted in May 2023 and February 2024.
Luis Pato Vinha Pan Bruto 2018 Bairrada, Portugal
Baga, no added sulfites. The must is hyperoxygenated. Disgorged freshly, with no dosage. Lovely fruit here: tangy with nice citrus (mandarin and lemon). Juicy and crystalline with a nice herby edge. 91/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan Bruto 2015 Bairrada, Portugal
Disgorged six months prior to tasting, no dosage, no sulfites. Very fine and toasty with spice and lemons as well as some dried herbs. Nice pear and peach fruit with a fine spicy note and good acidity. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2023 Bairrada, Portugal
Stainless steel. Fresh, focused and linear with lovely fruit: citrus, pear and a bit of peachy richness, but nice freshness too. 93/100
Luis Pato Maria Gomes 2022 Bairrada, Portugal
12.5% alcohol. This is free run juice, fermented and aged in stainless steel. Very floral and aromatic with pear, lemons and white peach, as well as some table grape notes. Fruity, lively and bright with nice generosity. 90/100
Luis Pato Parcela Cândido 2021 Bairrada, Portugal
This is Cercial fermented in 500 litre chestnut casks with temperature control. These have higher porosity than oak. Lovely fruit here: pear and citrus. A nice fruity white with depth and generosity, as well as some structure and a lemony edge. 93/100
Luis Pato Parcela Cândido 2022 Bairrada, Portugal
Lively with nice weight and good acid. Quite mineral and expressive with pear and grapefruit. Lovely fruit here. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal Branco Bical 2021 Bairrada, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is really impressive. It has a bit of colour, and a complex nose of wax and lime with some pithy grapefruit. In the mouth there’s some pithy citrus fruit together with yellow plum and white peach, and then lots of mineral, stony detail, finishing firm and waxy and taut. With high mineral extract and keen acidity, this is a fresh, complex, focused white that should age effortlessly for many years. Remarkable stuff, and quite lovely. 95/100
Luis Pato Quinta do Ribeirinho Branco Sercailinho 2021 Bairrada, Portugal
13% alcohol. Luis has 8 hectares of Sercialinho, planted in sandy soils. This is free run juice fermented and matured in chestnut casks. So fresh, mineral and fine with great acidity. Pure and mineral with lovely brightness to the fruit. Great focus. 95/100
Luis Pato Quinta do Ribeirinho Branco Sercailinho 2022 Bairrada, Portugal
Lively, with bright acidity. Stony and fine with lovely lemony fruit. Such precision here. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Tinto 2021 Bairrada, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is varietal Baga . Vivid cherry red in colour, this has floral cherry fruits with some spicy strawberry and a hint of chalkiness on the nose. In the mouth it is supple, fresh and stony with nice brightness but also well managed tannins, a touch of savoury detail and a mellow character: it’s Baga tamed, and rather well. Should age, but it’s delicious now. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 2019 Bairrada, Portugal
Recently Luis started to ferment the reds at lower temperatures (22-25 C), and as a result the wines are rounder than before. Nice intensity here. Fresh with good acidity and firm tannins under the vibrant red fruits. Has a slight waxy edge. Very fine. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 2018 Bairrada, Portugal
Juicy and vivid with lovely bright cherry and plum fruit, as well as good acidity. Very fine with nice precision. Good weight with sweet fruit. Precise and pure. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 1990 Bairrada, Portugal
Slightly cloudy, full yellow colour, but not too golden. Toast, pear, nuts and honey. Some cream and spice, with lovely citrus fruit. Crystalline and fresh with some spicy hints. 95/100
Older notes from 2017
Luis Pato is perhaps the most famous face in Bairrada, even though he’s had a bit of a love-hate relationship with the regional authorities, that led him for a time to drop ‘Bairrada’ and move to labelling his wines as Beiras, the larger regional appellation.
Pato is known as a modernist, but he makes wines that also integrate the best traditions of the region. One of the keys to making more serious wines from Baga, the red grape of the region, is reducing yields. ‘Baga was producing too much and only made great wines two years out of ten,’ he says. ‘Now we have cut the yields we can make great wine eight years out of ten.’ He also thinks there is a great future for sparkling wines of the region.
Luis was the first in the region to do a green harvest, in 1990. When he started doing it, his workers were distressed. ‘He is crazy,’ they said. ‘He is against God.’ Now he harvests Baga for sparkling wine three weeks earlier than picking for reds, from the same vineyard.
This was a great chance to look at current releases, and also to look back and see just how well some of these wines can age, red and white. We also got to compare the effect of sandy soils versus chalk and clay on Baga, through the lens of his Pe Franco wines made from ungrafted vines.
Luis Pato Vinha Pan Espumante 2015 Bairrada
This is made with no added sulfites, 100% Baga from chalky/clay soils, zero dosage. Intense and citrussy, and a bit sherbetty with a zesty palate and good acidity. Lovely purity and drive here, and a bit salty. 90/100
Luis Pato Informal Baga de Vinha Pan Espumante 2013
This is a pink fizz from Baga. Lively and taut with raspberry, strawberry and some herbs. Shows lively spiciness with nice intensity and lovely fruit. 89/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2016 Bairrada
This is 50% Bical from chalky/clay soil, 25% Sercial from sandy soils and 25% Sercialinho from sandy soils. Crisp and intense. Youthful with lovely pear and citrus fruit, and a hint of pithiness. Very pure with good acidity. 92/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2014 Bairrada
Fresh, lively and intense with crisp citrus fruit. Mineral and taut with nice density. Intense with good acid drive. 92/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2009 Bairrada
Bical chalky clay and Sercial and Sercialino from sandy soils. No oak. Some melon and pear fruit with fine toast and some softness on the mid-palate. Nice breadth here with a delicacy, and well integrated acidity. 90/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2007 Bairrada
Yellow/gold in colour. Lively, spicy and citrussy with some toasty notes. Has some butterscotch and also a lively spicy acidity. Lovely crystalline fruits quality here. Showing some evolution but still retaining freshness. 90/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2004 Bairrada
Full yellow/gold character. Toast, spice and nuts with some crystalline citrus fruits and a lovely depth, with good acidity. Nice weight with some development, and some savoury detail. Some singed lemon peel and marmalade characters here. 92/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2001 Bairrada
Only sandy soils for all varieties, fermented in new French oak. Nutty and oxidative, and deep in colour. Has raisins, herbs and the fruit has gone. Some baked apple notes. 85/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2000 Bairrada
Spicy and nutty with nice depth. Has citrus intensity, with some tangerine and lemon notes, and some citrus pith under the fruit. Vivid and weighty with some development but also some life. Lovely nutty/waxy detail. 90/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 1998 Bairrada
Very interesting with nuts, spice, a hint of raisin, some nectarine, marmalade and lemons. Has good acidity underpinning the fruit. Ageing really nicely, with complex nutty depth and just a hint of mushroom. Beguiling. 92/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 1991 Bairrada
Orange colour. This is from sandy soils and was fermented in new oak. Powerful and spicy with marmalade, herbs and apricot flavours. Very intense and still alive with some spicy citrus notes. Quite beautiful. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2016 Bairrada
Bical with 30% Serial, chalky clay soil. Lively with nice precision and a bit of pith. Really intense with nice lemon, pear and spice notes. Juicy and focused. Lovely. 92/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2010 Bairrada
Pure Bical from chalky/clay soil, fermented and aged in new French oak. Complex, slightly smoky, spicy, citrus fruit nose. Vivid, intense and citrussy on the palate with lovely texture and weight. Shows lovely weight and intensity with fine spicy complexity and good acidity. Very fine. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2008 Beiras
Vivid, spicy, crystalline citrus fruits nose. Very fine toasty hints. The palate is fresh and intense with vivid lemony fruit and some lovely spicy marmalade detail. Pithy, spicy, complex and intense with great freshness and lovely acidity. Lovely wine. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2004 Beiras
Yellow/gold colour. This has lots of interest: there is a smoky, mineral undercurrent to the spicy lemon and pear fruit, with a hint of apple and fine toasty hints, as well as some subtle mushroomy hints. Lovely wine. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2003 Beiras
Surprisingly fresh for such a warm year, with nice acidity, some apple notes, a bit of spice, and vivid citrus and pear fruit. Good concentration and depth with fine spiciness. The acid core is what makes this wine work so well. Lovely. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 2001 Beiras
This is quite rich and developed with some raisin hints, some baked apple and a bit of lemon curd sweetness. Attractive in a sort of mellow maturity. 89/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 1999 Bairrada
Bold and intense with sweet apple and pear with nice citrus and spice. Shows some development with the appley richness, but also has a bit of freshness, with nuts and good acidity. Very attractive. 90/100
Luis Pato Vinha Formal 1998 Bairrada
Full yellow colour. This is beautiful: textured and creamy with lovely smooth, slightly saline crystalline citrus fruits with some melon richness, and hints of nuts and toast. Very fine with lovely depth: this is ageing so well. 93/100
This was an interesting comparison. It was looking at Baga grown on ungrafted vines in two vineyards 9 km apart. The Valadas comes from chalky clay soil while the straight Pé Franco comes from sandy soils. The Baga from sandy soils shows more acid and tannin so needs more time in new French oak, while the chalky clay makes wines that are much more smoky. ‘If I put this in new oak, people say it is too oaky,’ says Luis. So he uses used oak for this wine.
Luis Pato Pé Franco Valadas Vineyard 2015 Bairrada
Supple, fresh and detailed with lovely freshness and appealing raspberry and red cherry fruit. Has lovely acidity and such a supple, elegant character. The tannins are well integrated. Lovely elegance and precision. 95/100
Luis Pato Pé Franco Quinta de Riberinho 2015 Bairrada
|Complex with some sweet spicy oak hiding under sweet but fresh cherry and berry fruit. Ripe, intense and firm with grippy tannins. It still hasn’t integrated the oak. There’s lots of potential but it’s tannic now. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Barossa 2015 Bairrada
Very elegant, supple and fine. Sweet and juicy with lovely red cherry fruit and a bit of spice. There’s a silky texture with a bit of tannic grip, and smooth pure fruit. Very juicy and lively. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Tinto 1988 Bairrada
Earth, spice and tar and some grip. Earthy and intense with some tannins. Rasping, grippy and firm with nice fruit still. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 2015 Bairrada
Very floral and expressive with amazing cherry fruit aromas. The palate is so pretty and pure with red cherries and raspberries. Silky and expressive with nice purity. Has some stony spiciness under the fruit. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 1999 Bairrada
This was a difficult vintage but the wine has developed beautifully. Earthy and spicy with nice density. Grippy yet elegant with good structure. Drinking beautifully now. 94/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 1997 Bairrada
Highly aromatic and developed with beguiling leafy green, spicy, earthy, malty cherry fruits. The palate is harmonious and elegant with smooth, sweet, subtly leafy earthy fruit. Very smooth and delicious. Lovely stuff but drink up. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Barossa 1997 Bairrada
Lively, spicy and intense with vivid raspberries and cherries, and some freshness. Has earth and tar, and a hint of plummy bitterness on the finish. Developed but still with some grip and some edges. 93/100
Luis Pato Vinha Pan 1996 Bairrada
Vivid and supple with nice spiciness. There’s some finesse to this as well as good structure still. Fine spices and attractive fruit characters. 93/100
